


Time To Think

by heatherkw



Category: Stitchers (TV)
Genre: Developing Relationship, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Romance, camsten
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-07
Updated: 2015-09-08
Packaged: 2018-04-13 12:28:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 21,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4521963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heatherkw/pseuds/heatherkw
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set immediately after 1x07. Kirsten's reaction to Liam's proposal. Kirsten seeks advice from Camille. Eventually a Camsten story! With speculation for episode 1x08. (Originally posted on Fanfiction)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone. So I'm new to this whole AO3 thing, so if I didn't do tags correctly, please let me know! Or give suggestions as to how to do them. 
> 
> And let's see if I can get the italics to work... lol. 
> 
> I'm relatively new to writing fanfiction, and this is my first ever fic... posted about 2-3 weeks ago on fanficiton (same username). Hope you enjoy! It's currently 9 chapters, with at least 1 more to go. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Stitchers. If I did, Kirsten and Cameron would have already gotten together... and that cliffhanger wouldn't have happened lol.

*Kirsten's POV*

"Will you marry me?" he asked, with a hopeful look in his eyes. 

I hesitated, and I couldn't explain it. "I... I need to think," was all I could get out. He looked confused, and hurt... at least from studying emotional cue cards, that was the most logical emotions. "I'll give you some time," he said. He closed the ring box, and placed it on the end table on the patio, turning around to leave. 

Why did I need to think? Liam and I had been dating for 3 years. Granted, we were only together a few weeks over the course of the 3 years. But time didn't matter. When we were together, it was like we were always together. And I didn't miss him when he was away, since it seemed like he was always away. Should I miss him? Maybe the stitches were affecting me more than I thought. I was never concerned about missing him before.

I heard the keys in the door, Camille was home. I looked at the clock, 10:02pm. Liam had been gone for approximately 45 minutes, since it was 9:17pm when he left. 

"Hey! Thanks for the advice earlier. I asked like a normal person and I got a raaaaissse!" she said, dancing around the living room. "New boots from my awesome roomie, a fixed water heater from Mr. Delicious Abs, and a raise... Wait, where is Mr. Delicious Abs anyways?"

"Uh, he went home," I said, looking up at Camille. 

"Home, huh?," a quizzical look on her face. Camille studied her for a minute, and asked "is everything okay?"

Thinking that another perspective might be helpful, I figured it couldn't hurt to get her opinion. "Liam asked me to marry him," I said. 

"Wait, what?!," she screamed. "Let me see the ring! And why aren't you celebrating with your gorgeous man?" she winked. She looked down at my left hand, realizing that I wasn't wearing a ring. "Oh... what did you say? Do you want to talk about it?"

"The ring is on the table outside," was all I said. 

Camille crossed the room and exited the sliding glass door, picking up the small box. She opened it, staring at the ring. She came back inside, setting the box on the coffee table. She looked at me, placing her hand on my shoulder, waiting. Was that concern in her eyes?.. yes, concern. 

"I said I needed to think," glancing down at my hands, playing with the hem of my red shirt. 

"Okay. Think about what?"

"Well, I'm not really sure. I was hoping you could help..." I said cautiously, waiting for a response from Camille. When she didn't respond, I took that as an opportunity to continue. "I mean, I like him, and he loves me. I guess I never thought about getting married."

Camille weighed what I said. "Are you happy with Liam?”

Am I happy with him?... “I guess I never really thought about it that way.”

“Well why don't you think about it. And if you aren't, I'd be more than happy to take Mr. Abs off your hands,” she said with a wink. 

Would I be happy with him? I can see it in Liam's eyes, that he cares for me. The way he looks at me reminds me of Lily and Scott on their honeymoon. They loved intensely and deeply. But I couldn't ever feel that way, not with my disorder. I won't ever feel that way about Liam. Is that fair to him? 

What could our life be? I could never tell him about my work, Maggie wouldn't be too happy about that. At least when I told Detective Fisher, he could become part of the Stitchers program to assist in questioning suspects in the field. I don't think a cultural anthropologist would be quite as useful to Maggie. And I don't trust her enough to test that theory. She and Leslie Turner are already keeping secrets about the real purpose behind the Stitchers program, who knows what they would do if someone else found out, someone that didn't have a useful addition to the program. Would it be fair to Liam that I couldn't be truthful about working for a secret government agency, stitching into mind's of dead people. 

I didn't used to be this concerned about other people's well being. Maybe the stitching is affecting me more than I realized. Perhaps residual emotions? Although Bentley only cared about feeling important and having material possessions. So that can't be it... Maybe it's more of an additive effect from all the stitches, getting exposed to different emotions. 

And earlier, when I tried to surprise Liam with the new clothes and the hair and make up for our dinner out, that was pretty out of character for me. I tried to do something nice and thoughtful, and he didn't even appreciate my efforts. Did I care? 

“Helloooo... earth to Kirsten. What are you thinking about?” Camille asked. 

“Do I seem different to you?,” I inquired.

“Different? Well we talk more. I mean, I guess maybe you're a little less Kirsten and softer around the edges. If that makes sense.”

“Yeah, I think it does. I'm different now, and I can't be with Liam. He's expecting the old Kirsten,” I reasoned. It feels like I've always been a little soft around the edges, as Camille put it. Not quite as hard and calculating, but still me. 

“I have to go speak to Liam,” I said as I gathered my purse and the ring and went to my car. 

... later that night...

“Are you sure that's what you want?,” he asked me as I handed him back the small jewelry box. I could see the pain behind his eyes. 

“Yes, I'm sure. I'm sorry, but it's difficult to explain. I'm different now, I want more.” I'm not quite sure what _more_ is yet. But a fiance that I couldn't tell about my work, didn't understand when I needed to rush back to the lab, and didn't appreciate my gestures wasn't something I wanted. 

I turned around, walked back to my car, and went home. 

When I entered I noticed Camille, curled up on the couch sleeping. I closed the door as quietly as I could. 

“Hey, are you alright?,” Camille asked, yawning. 

“Why does everyone ask if you're alright, when they know you're alright?,” I replied. 

“So... Liam?” she asked. 

“I broke up with him. And now it feels like we've always been broken up,” I shrugged.

“Well if you ever want to talk, I'm here.”

“Thank you Camille,” I said as I smiled at her, and turned to walk towards my bedroom.

“And you know, if you ever want to talk about any other revelations... say about Cameron... I'm here if you wanted to talk about that,” she said as she grinned from ear to ear. 

“About Cameron... what about Cameron?”

“I guess it's obvious to everyone except you, which makes sense, since you can't quite detect emotions as easily as others would. He has a thing for you. He likes you Kirsten. The way he's so overprotective, and the cute nicknames- stretch, princess...” 

I glanced at the clock, 1:37am. After the long day and night, closing Bentley's case... then Liam. I was pretty tired. “I'm going to bed,” I said. At least it was the weekend and I had off the next 2 days. Unless an emergency stitch came up, which was always likely. 

“Good night Kirsten. I guess that's enough revelations for you for one night,” Camille said. 

*Camille's POV*

I pulled out my phone to text Linus _Sooo I'm going to need your help with something._

Despite the time of night, I got a response almost instantly _Oh yeah ;-)_

I rolled my eyes.. of course his mind would go there. _No, not for that. We need to hook up Kirsten and Cameron._ I replied. This is an interesting turn of events, at least it will be when Kirsten realizes that she has feelings for Cameron too. 

_Um, did I miss something? I thought she was dating Liam, the perfect and selfless boyfriend._

_Not anymore.. they broke up. I need you to do recon on Cameron. We'll talk tomorrow._ I responded. 

Yes, definitely going to formulate a plan to get them together... After some much needed sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

*Camille's POV*

What was that noise?... Barking? Oh, 'Cujo' must be out again. Great. That neighbor really needs to stop leaving their dog outside all day long. I glanced at the clock, 8:23am. Well, as good of a time as any to start the day. 

I reached for my phone on the nightstand... hmm, 5 new text messages. All from Linus.

1:53am _What kind of recon on Cameron?_

1:55am _Well I can tell you that he was jealous of Liam. Earlier he was going on about how could he disappear for 2 years and act like nothing had changed._

1:56am _And how exactly are we going to get them together?_

2:09am _Well, interesting development. Cameron seemed quite interested when I said that Kirsten and Liam had broken up. Something about how she could do better, have someone that was actually there for her. What exactly happened between them anyway?_

2:11am _Camille?_

Oh Linus, ye of little faith. All it takes is a little bit of meddling. 

Now... what would be the best way to get them together? Cameron was pretty chicken, but I noticed the way he gazed at her when he thought no one was looking. At the lab, at their house, at his apartment... No, he's not going to make the first move without a push in the right direction. 

So that leaves Kirsten. She has been quite the handful over the last year. I didn't even know she had a boyfriend for the last 3 years. You figured that might come up in conversation at one point. But then again, it's Kirsten. Although last night was a surprise, asking her for advice about Liam. Still, Kirsten would take more than a little nudge to admit any feelings for Cameron. 

So going after the weak link might be the best option... Cameron it is. 

_Alright Linus. Did Cameron mention anything else last night?_

Oooh, is that coffee I smell? Kirsten must be awake. Time to do more digging. 

“Good morning my dear Kirsten” I said, rounding the corner into the kitchen. 

“Good morning,” she replied.

“How are you this lovely morning?” I said, grabbing a mug from the cabinet, pouring a very large cup of coffee. Ah caffeine. 

“Just fine,” she responded, with a confused look on her face.

Well back to the usual Kirsten it seems. “So..” 

“I'm going to take a shower.” And just like that, she had disappeared towards her bedroom. So much for more digging... 

 

*Cameron's POV*

Ugh... my head was pounding. What happened last night? There was lots of beer, and playing video games, and oh yeah, swearing off women. Something about Linus wanting a girlfriend that wouldn't get flustered at the first guy with a six pack. I stumbled into the kitchen, choosing to skip my usual cup of tea for a glass of water and some aspirin. Then I noticed Linus, asleep on the couch. I guess he must have crashed here. Linus... what did he say last night? Something about Kirsten... oh! Kirsten and Liam had broken up. At least according to Camille. Well that was an interesting twist. I wonder what happened, who broke up with whom. Just as well, Kirsten deserves someone who will be there for her. How could she trust him, rely on him, when he's gone for the majority of their relationship. And besides, he seemed too perfect, with his perfect abs. 

The way that Linus was prying... so much for giving up women. If he didn't know any better, he would think that Linus was up to something. 

Well at least they had the day off. I need to clean up the gigantic mess from our bro night, and recover from the hangover. 

 

*Kirsten's POV*

I sat at my desk, staring at the unusual key that I discovered behind my mother's picture. What is it that Ed Clarke wanted me to remember.... 

I thought back to last night. To what Camille said about Cameron. That he liked me. I'm assuming she meant in a romantic nature, since we were all friends and friends inherently like each other. Even though we were all friends, he doesn't have nicknames for Camille or Linus. At least, not that I was aware of. Did that mean that he likes me? What did I think of the nicknames? I guess it's endearing. I certainly didn't mind them. 

What other cues would Camille have picked up on, suggesting that Cameron liked me? He does seem overprotective of me. But his job was to protect me in the stitches, to make sure I was okay. So I never gave it any additional consideration.

Now that I thought about it, Cameron does try to spend additional time with me. The work lunches that were just the two of us, and insisting that he pays. And he makes sure that I get home okay after work, even though medical always clears me after stitching, so he already knows I'm alright. That could be interpreted as the socially acceptable convention of dating- the man paying for meals, walking me home. He did seem intrigued when I was alright with coworkers dating, after discovering Camille and Linus were sleeping together. One could presume that Cameron was interested in a romantic relationship with me, based on those observations. According to Camille, everyone else had already come to that conclusion. Although 'everyone else' was probably just defined as Linus. 

What did I think about Cameron? We were certainly close, closer than any other friendship I had in the past. Other than maybe Camille. I was starting to trust him. I had confronted him first about the leak in the stitchers program algorithm. Or maybe that's because I wanted to clear him first, wanted to believe that he didn't leak it. I trusted him with the memory I had of me wearing the electrode harness in water as a child. I didn't even tell Camille about that. And Cameron was certainly attractive... 

I heard three knocks at my bedroom door, Camille waving as she entered. “Hey, did you hear your phone? As much as I would love to interrogate you about your thoughts on Cameron, we're needed at the lab. Maggie texted that we should all get there asap.”

“Alright,” I replied, walking through the living room to grab my purse and phone as I headed for the door. “And I've decided that I'm going to ask Cameron out on a date.”

“Wait, what?! I have so many questions.” She had a very excited look on her face, as she slammed the front door shut, preventing us from leaving.

“I thought you said Maggie needed us asap, let's go.” I reached behind her to open the door, and walked towards the car.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Speculation for Episode 1x08, based on the short clip shown after episode 1x07.

*Cameron's POV*

My phone chirped. It was Maggie. _There's a new case. Get to the office asap._

Fantastic... so much for the weekend to relax. And after finding out about Liam, I was actually looking forward to a few days away from Kirsten. Swearing off women, that was the way to get over her. Although that was before I found out that they had broken up. Oh well, I'll have plenty of time to reflect on that later. 

“Linus,” I said clearing my throat. No response. “Linus!,” throwing one of the pillows in his face. 

“Is that any way to treat your guests?,” he replied, rolling over to shield his face from any additional flying pillows aimed at his head.

“Haha, very funny. Maggie texted, we all need to get to the lab.” 

“Fine. So much for the free weekend.”

“My thoughts exactly,” I said, putting on my shoes. We each grabbed an apple on the way out the door. 

We got to the lab in about 20 minutes, although we were the last ones there. Maggie was in her office, and Kirsten and Camille were already settled in the conference room. We walked towards the conference room. I noticed that the conversation abruptly stopped as soon as we entered. “Good morning boys,” Camille beamed. 

“Morning,” I replied. There was something about Camille, the way she was studying me. Yes, her and Linus were definitely plotting something. I'll have to ask Linus about it after this case. 

Maggie waltzed into the conference room. “Sorry to interrupt your weekend everyone, but this is a high priority case.” She pulled up the information on the screen and continued. “This is Robert Yates, 39 years old. He worked as a microbiologist for a highly classified government research facility, testing new vaccines for various strains of H5N1- highly pathogenic avian influenza. Initial assessment of the victim would suggest a heart attack. However, he doesn't have any family history that would show precursors for heart conditions. So we were contacted to eliminate any possibility of foul play.” 

Camille was the first one to respond. “So... do we really think it's a good idea to bring someone that worked with deadly viruses into the lab?”

“There are strict decontamination protocols in place. And no incidents of a containment breach have been reported at the facility. Because this is a high clearance case, none of you are to go out in the field. Detective Fisher is back from special assignment, and will be handling anything out in the field. Understood?” She glared at Kirsten and I. 

Kirsten didn't seem too quick to answer, so I answered for the both of us, “understood.”

“If there are no further questions, let's get started.” She replied, turning back out towards her office. 

I noticed Camille's fingers quickly typing on her tablet. “Only 60 percent mortality rate... ya know, what's the worst that could happen?” I heard her say, under her breath. 

Linus and Camille got up to leave, leaving just the two of us. 

“You alright there Cupcake?” I inquired. She had been unusually quiet since arriving at the lab. 

“Yes. Why?,” she responded, tilting her head with a slight look of confusion. 

“Just checking on you, that's all.” I smiled widely at her. 

I noticed a small smirk as she said, “Well, I better get changed.”

 

*Kirsten's POV*

While I was perfectly capable of changing myself, Camille insisting on following me. 

“So, when are you going to ask Cameron out?,” she said as soon as the door to the locker room closed.

I shouldn't be surprised... this is Camille. “You're not going to stop until I ask him out, are you?”

“Of course not. Not since you broke up with Liam and announced that you were going to ask out Cameron.”

“I'll ask him out for dinner tonight,” I conceded. 

“Great! I'm helping you get ready. Don't even think about saying no.”

“Alright, that would be nice. Thank you.” It actually would be nice. She had helped me get ready for my last date too. I really liked how my hair turned out, I could never get it to hold curls. Hopefully Cameron would be half as excited as Camille seemed to be. 

I finished putting away my clothes and purse in my locker, and went out to see Cameron to get ready for the stitch. 

Camille and I exited the locker room, and I made a direct line for Cameron. I caught him staring at me for a brief second, before he spoke. “Hey, you ready to start?,” as he handed me my ear piece. 

I set it down on the desk. “Yes, in a minute. Would you like to go to dinner tonight after work?,” I asked, noticing Camille staring in my peripheral vision. 

“Dinner, yeah. You mean the two of us, Camille, and Linus?” 

“No, just the two of us. For a date.” I smiled warmly at him. 

“A date... yeah, I mean yes. I would love to go on a date with you.” He looked startled at first, but once I clarified that it was a date, he looked happy with a bit of nervousness. 

“Great. I'd love that. Pick me up at 7.” I picked up the ear piece, and made my way to the fish tank. After I settled in, I realized that Cameron hadn't said anything since. “You ready, girlfriend?,” I asked him. 

“You bet Princess, you bet.”


	4. Chapter 4

*Cameron's POV*

Did that really just happen? Kirsten, the amazing, intelligent, beautiful, yet let's face it... slightly socially awkward woman, just asked me out. 

I had about a million questions. What about Liam? Were they broken up for good? Did she even know that I knew that they had broken up? Is this just a casual thing for her? Or worse... what if it's a rebound? And if it is only a rebound for her, how will that affect our work relationship? Is that why Camille and Linus have been acting so strange the last few days? 

I was lost in my thoughts and concerns, when I heard her ask “You ready, girlfriend?” I looked up and she was already in the fish tank. Right, back to work. There's time for obsessive worrying later. 

“You bet Princess, you bet.” I had just finished my last checks for the stitch. “Alright lights at 20 percent please. I need a go/no go for stitch neurosync. Medical?”

“Her vitals are good. We're a go.”

“Life-sci?”

“We're a go.”

“Sub-bio?”

“Go.”

“Communication?”I directed towards Linus. 

“We're a go, baby.”

“Engineering?”

“Go.”

“Comm check Buttercup. Can you hear me?” 

“Yeah, I hear you Stud. Loud and clear.”

“Alright. Initiate stitch neurosync on my mark. 3... 2... 1... mark.”

 

*Kirsten's POV*

I was in a laboratory. This must be where he worked. It was bright. He was wearing a protective suit and a face mask with respirator. There were incubators with cell cultures in them. A coworker was there with him, a woman, shorter, with red hair. 

“Kirsten, what do you see?,” I heard Cameron speak into my ear piece. 

“A laboratory. I see biohazard signs, and he's wearing a protective suit and mask. There's a woman here, a coworker.”

“Now I'm in a conference room. There's a different coworker here, a man, tall, thinning hair. Maybe his boss?”

I heard them speaking. There's a new strain of the virus, a mutation in the genetic sequence. The WHO and CDC are investigating cases of a possible outbreak in China, affecting several flocks of birds near farmlands. They sent samples here to analyze and characterize this strain of virus. The other man seems worried, stressed perhaps. “They're speaking about a new outbreak in China, the virus has mutated. The CDC and WHO wanted him to evaluate the mutation and determine what antiviral would work if this particular strain would spread to humans.”

I'm back in the same laboratory, but outside of the room, B-305. There's a man inside, average height, brown hair, thick rimmed glasses. He's looking at vials of virus stock in a freezer. He's suspicious of that man, but I don't know why. I feel as though he shouldn't be there. 

“Two minutes Stretch, what else do you see?,” I heard again in my ear. 

“There's a man in the laboratory that he's suspicious of. Room B-305.”

“Now I'm in an office. Maybe in his home. I see a lot of medical journals and publications, text books, and a cherry wood desk. There's a picture of him and his wife at the desk.”

“30 seconds Kirsten.” 

Someone came at him from behind. They're struggling, Robert is fighting back. Still can't get a good look at him.

“15 seconds. Make the bounce Kirsten!”

“Kirsten.... pin code... iheartlinus,” my fingers gliding over the keypad. I sat up. “He was fighting with someone, I couldn't get a good look at him though. I'm not sure if the heart attack was a direct result of the fight or not. I'd like to take a look at pictures of his coworkers. I can identify them from the stitch,” I directed that statement towards Maggie. 

“Yes, I'll get in touch with the contact from his work,” Maggie replied. “Robert's wife found him in their home office. So if there was someone else there, I'll get Detective Fisher to investigate. Prepare the equipment for another stitch after the refractory period, see if we can find out anything else. Meet up in the conference room after everything is set up.”

I stepped out of the fish tank, to go towards the locker room. Camille trailed right behind me. 

“Well, what did he say?,” she whispered to me. 

“What did who say?”

“Who do you think I mean? Cameron... what did you say? What did he say?” 

That girl can sure gossip. I'm sure it's just because she means well. We have become a bit closer recently. “I asked him out on a date. He said yes. We're going out tonight at 7.”

I finished changing, while Camille went on about what I should wear, and how she would do my hair. Yes, we were definitely becoming friends, it was... nice. “Do you wear eyeliner?,” she asked. 

“No, not really. How are you and Linus?”

She looked surprised. “We're good, still casual. Why do you ask?” 

“That's what friends do, right?,” I stated, matter-of-factly. 

“Why yes it is. Thank you for asking, friend.” She interlocked her arm in mine. “Come on, let's get coffee.”

…..

We were in the conference room, waiting on Maggie to get personnel information on Robert's coworkers. Camille and Linus were making plans to go over to his place this evening. While Cameron was... staring at me. I was going over Robert's memories, to see if I could get any more information. It could have been one minute, or one hour before I noticed him staring. “Cameron?,” I asked, turning towards him. 

“Yeah, what's up Stretch?”

“I just noticed, you were staring at me. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah.” He looked like he wanted to ask something, so I waited. “Hey, so-”

“We have the files on the employees that Robert worked with,” Maggie declared, as she entered the conference room. “Or at least the information the facility is willing to give us.” She brought the images up on the screen. Must be a small group, there were only nine people working in that department with Robert. “Kirsten, do any of these people look familiar?”

“Yes. The first row, second picture. He was speaking with Robert about the virus outbreak.”

“That's John Cooper. Head of the division, and Robert's boss. He was the main point of contact with the WHO regarding this case, with Robert taking the lead in the lab.”

“Then there's the girl with red hair. Second row, last picture.”

“That would be Emma Porter. She was working with Robert on this investigation. He was her mentor.”

“The guy on the bottom left, with the glasses. I don't know why, but Robert didn't trust him. No one else looks familiar, I didn't see them in his memories.”

“The guy is Jason Ellis. Relatively new to the facility. He was working on another project in the same department.”

“So he probably didn't have a reason to be in Robert's lab, looking through virus stocks,” I concluded. 

“Most likely not. How soon can we stitch back into Robert?,” Maggie directed her question towards Linus and Cameron. 

“Approximately three more hours. We lucked out with the short refractory period,” Linus responded. 

“Great. See what you can find out about his coworkers in the meantime, especially Jason. From _inside_ the lab please.”

Just as Maggie got up to leave, the alarms started to go off. 

“What's that? Fire drill?,” Camille asked. 

“No, something much worse. The air filtration system must have detected an anomaly. We're on lock down. Cameron and Linus, figure out what set off the alarm. Kirsten and Camille, look into the coworkers. I'll contact Robert's work, see if I can figure out what would be causing this.” 

“My guess is the deadly virus with a 60 percent mortality rate. This is the worse that could happen,” Camille muttered to herself.


	5. Chapter 5

*Camille's POV*

We only had another hour until Kirsten could be stitched into Robert again, and I feel like we've hardly discovered anything about his coworkers. John and Emma were relatively straight forward, nothing out of the ordinary. John and his wife had two kids, both in college, their house would be paid off in a few years. His wife was a nurse at a hospital in LA. Emma had just finished graduate school three years ago, and was recruited to work with Robert. She had just moved in with her boyfriend six months ago. He was a history teacher at a nearby high school. Nothing unusual in their activity or finances.

But Jason was the real mystery. His wife divorced him a year ago, and she was granted full custody of their daughter. Up until three months ago there wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Then he stopped using credit cards, making his activities almost impossible to track. There was definitely something unusual, I just can't quite figure it out yet. I was looking into Jason's activities while Kirsten was accessing Robert's memories to see if there was anything she missed from the first stitch. 

Maggie signaled us to meet her in the conference room. Here's the hoping the alarm system was just a glitch... 

I picked up my laptop, and started walking towards the conference room. “Kirsten, you coming?”

“What? Oh, right,” as she followed me. 

“Alright everyone. I spoke with John Cooper,” Maggie started. “He informed me that the mutation in the genetic sequence of this outbreak has resulted in a higher probability of transmitting to humans. Is there any indication as to what's causing the alarm?” she asked Cameron and Linus. 

“Yes, the alarm system has detected a biohazard threat in our lab. The computer is currently analyzing to determine what it is,” Linus responded. Yup, this day just went from bad to worse...

“Well for now we will assume that it's the influenza virus that Robert was working on. I'll contact John and the CDC for quarantine protocols. We're already on lock down from the automated system, and our lab is on a separate air filtration system, so there's no possibility of anything getting out. But if Robert was infected, he could have passed it to anyone at his work, the commute, or his home. I'll have Detective Fisher check on his wife. Anything else from Robert's memories?,” she directed towards Kirsten. 

“No, nothing,” Kirsten replied. 

“What about the coworkers?”

“Nothing unusual about John and Emma, they check out. But there's definitely something suspicious about Jason, he's been off the grid for the better part of three months. I'm still digging.” 

“Good. Keep me updated. Kirsten, get ready to stitch in again. See what you can find out about Jason and any containment breaches that Robert might have known about. We still have a job to do people.”

 

*Kirsten's POV*

“Can you hear me Stretch?,” Cameron asked in my ear. 

“Yes, I hear you.”

“Alright, initiating stitch neurosync in 3... 2... 1... mark.”

I'm back at the conference room. He's speaking with John again. There have been cases of the virus infecting humans near the other outbreaks that affected the wildlife. Twenty cases of infected individuals, two of which resulted in death so far. The WHO thinks the virus is more easily transmitted in humans. It's possible that it could turn into a pandemic. “There are cases of the virus infecting humans, near the same area in China. A handful of people infected, two dead.”

Now I'm back outside Robert's lab. He sees Jason looking at the virus stocks. He confronted him, asking him what he's doing. They're arguing. Robert is saying he has no right to be in his lab, that only he and Emma are working on this project. He's trying to cover his ass, saying that John authorized him to do inventory. Robert doesn't believe him. 

“Two minutes left. What else?,” Cameron spoke into my ear piece. 

I'm in the lab, at a later time. Robert is alone. He's checking the virus stocks that Jason was looking at. He noticed the vials were in a different order. “He thinks that Jason might be stealing virus stocks. The vials are in a different order, and neither he nor Emma had moved them.”

Now I'm at his home office. What was he doing? Looking for something in his desk? No, there's a hidden compartment in the lower left hand drawer. He placed files in the compartment, and covered it back up, closing the drawer. I feel like it has something to do with Jason. Maybe proof that he was stealing the virus. “He has a hidden compartment in his desk at home, with files in it, lower left drawer.” I see the struggle again. Jason attacked him. He's fighting back. Jason has a syringe, he injects Robert in the neck. Robert is yelling at him, why is he doing this? What's in it for him? They're supposed to be protecting the world from these viruses. Robert is angry, furious with Jason. Jason decks him, hard. It takes a moment for Robert to recover, and Jason is gone. Now he's clutching his chest, slumping over in pain. 

“30 seconds Princess,” I hear Cameron again. 

“I'm bouncing. Kirsten.... iheartlinus.” 

 

*Cameron's POV*

I shut down the stitch neurosync. Kirsten sat up and turned around towards me. “He did die of a heart attack, but right after Jason injected him with something. I think the virus. Because he knew too much. Jason was taking vials of the virus. I think he has proof, or at the very least was gathering proof in that hidden compartment in his desk.”

“I'll get Detective Fisher on it right away. And I'll contact John, see what treatment they have for this strain,” Maggie announced. 

Linus interjected, “I looked into Robert's research notes that John provided. Patients typically become symptomatic after 6-12 hours. Fatalities have occurred as early as 24 hours after exposure. We're right around the 6 hour time frame from being exposed...” he trailed off. 

“Alright everyone. If you have any symptoms, go to medical right away. Fever, chills, muscle aches, fatigue, and headaches are common initial symptoms, followed by coughing, nausea, vomiting, then hallucinations with high fevers. We need to stay on top of this.” I saw a flash of emotion on Maggie's face, she was worried. I'm sure that no one else noticed, but we have been working together for a few years. After a while, I had picked up on her subtle changes. 

I walked over to the fish tank. Kirsten was still sitting up, arms propped on the edge of the tank. “Kirsten, you should go to medical for a follow up. You know, just in case.” I offered her my hand. She accepted it, standing up. 

“Alright. Will you come with me?” She walked down the stairs. I reached for a towel on the table, wrapping it around her. I let my hand linger on her shoulder, probably longer than I should have. I couldn't help myself, knowing that she felt the same way. I'm sure the possibility of our impending death had something to do with my actions too, causing me to be bolder than usual. 

“Of course Sunshine,” I responded, dropping my hand. I smiled at her, hoping to conceal my concern. “Did you want to change first?”

“Sure,” she said, leading the way. We walked the rest of the way in silence. 

“I'll be right out here, k?” She nodded in response, and went to change out of the cat suit. Perhaps it's for the best. I had trouble concentrating, seeing her in that skin tight suit, the way it hugged her body... 

"Hey,” I heard Kirsten say, pulling me from my thoughts. She had already changed back into her dark jeans and baby blue tank top.

"Hey, let's get you to medical.” I forced a quick smile, hoping that everything would check out. 

When we got to medical, no one else was there yet, just Ayo. I addressed her, “Can you give Kirsten a follow up please?”

“Of course, take a seat,” she replied. Kirsten sat on one of the hospital beds, and I pulled up a chair across from her. I stayed out of Ayo's way, to let her do her job. It only took a few minutes for her to finish.

“Her blood pressure, heart rate, EKG are all normal. Temperature is slightly elevated at 99.4 degrees. We should keep an eye on that, it's almost a full degree higher than when you went into the stitch. If you experience any other symptoms, please let me know,” Ayo finished. She walked back over to the computer, likely to update Kirsten's file. 

I stood up, and sat next to her on the hospital bed. “You feeling alright?” 

She shifted her whole body over towards me, our legs were touching now. She gave me a small smile. “Yes, I feel fine.” 

“You sure? You may not be in a stitch, but I'm still going to protect you.”

“I know,” she said. That's surprising, this time she didn't argue that she didn't need protecting. Something has definitely changed, she's warming up to me, much more quickly than I expected. 

A few minutes passed. I looked at the clock, 5:27pm, and I realized something. “Hey, so I guess we'll have to raincheck our date.” There was no way we would be cleared from a quarantine situation in time to make it to dinner at 7pm. We would be lucky if we get out of here by tomorrow. 

“Right, raincheck... You promise?” She looked at me. She puts on a tough exterior, but I saw a bit of sadness, mixed with hope in her eyes. Maybe she thought I was backing out. 

“Yes, I promise,” I said, giving her the most genuine smile I could, under the circumstances. 

“Good.” She smiled back, and leaned her head on my shoulder. I brushed the back of my hand against hers, and she responded by placing her hand in mine, and interlocking our fingers. Kirsten Clarke was full of surprises today. 

We stayed that way for a while, content just to be here for each other. That is, until Linus and Camille barged in. Camille was leaning into Linus, and it almost looked like he was holding her up. Camille wasn't looking too well... 

“Ayo, can you check out Camille? She feels hot,” Linus stated. “And she says she has a headache.” 

She jumped up from her chair, to help Linus get Camille to a bed. “Let's take a look at you Camille.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got a little stuck on this chapter, but I think I'm happy with how it turned out. Hope you all enjoy!


	6. Chapter 6

*Cameron's POV*

As much as I didn't want to leave Kirsten's side, I should go help Linus and Ayo with Camille. I let go of Kirsten's hand, kissing her forehead briefly, before I could overthink it and change my mind. “I'm going to go help them,” I said, standing up and walking over towards Camille. “Hey there, can I get you anything Camille?” 

“Water would be nice,” she responded. 

“Your wish is my command.” I ran to the break room, getting two glasses of water. One for Camille, and one for Kirsten. I was only gone a minute. 

When I got back to medical, Ayo was finishing up her examination of Camille. “How's she doing?,” I asked and handed Camille a glass of water. 

“Her temperature is 100.8 degrees, she has chills and a headache. Just try to take it easy for now.” She gave Camille a gentle pat on the shoulder, leaving to check on the three other people that had gathered in the medical bay. 

Linus had his arm around her. Despite their not entirely well defined relationship, I knew he cared about her a lot. It showed, he was worried about her. I gave them a small smile, and went back to Kirsten. 

“Hey, I brought you some water,” as I handed her the glass. 

“Thank you,” she replied with a genuine smile, taking a few sips of the water. 

“Are you feeling alright?” 

“Yes, I feel fine still. We should see if Maggie has any new information,” she stated. 

“That's probably a good idea. Let's go. Hey Linus, we'll let you know if we need you.” 

I placed my hand in the small of her back as we walked out the door. I definitely couldn't help myself. She didn't seem to mind though, because she leaned into me. 

We found Maggie in the conference room, looking over notes from Robert's research. We didn't exactly have a lot to go on yet. 

“Do we have any updates yet?,” I asked her. 

“Not yet. John and Emma are gathering additional research notes to send us. According to them, Robert had tested two antiviral drugs, but didn't have success yet. Detective Fisher is on his way to Robert's home, but it's unlikely that we would get any relevant information that would help us.” 

So we waited. Maggie continued to look over Robert's research notes, while Kirsten and I looked up anything and everything related to this strain of virus. We just needed something to point us in the right direction. 

Maggie's phone went off. “Yes, Detective Fisher. What did you find out?” She put the phone on speaker. 

“I have Robert's notes here from the hidden compartment in his desk- his wife didn't even know about it. It looks like he was gathering evidence that Jason was stealing stocks of virus. I see time stamps of his badge in and out of the facility, cross referenced with notes of vials being out of order in the freezer. Every vial is accounted for, however, Robert has a theory that Jason replaced the virus with a saline solution. No one would know until they thawed out the virus to use.”

“Okay. Get to John at his office, see if he can find out anything else from his notes.” 

“Will do. I'll keep you updated,” Detective Fisher spoke, as Maggie hung up the phone. 

“Well, nothing we didn't figure out already...” as she put her phone away. 

 

… an hour later... 

 

My head was beginning to throb. And either it was me, or it was getting hot in here. We still didn't have any leads on how to treat the virus. I had to figure this out, to save Kirsten... to save all of us. 

Maggie rushed in. “John just called. He and Emma sent over the remainder of Robert's research notes. They're working on their end, to see what kind of treatment they can come up with. They're also assembling a biohazard team, to deliver the treatment... but that will take a few hours. Even then, they need to know what antiviral will counteract the virus.”

We had just started going over the research notes, when Camille and Linus walked through the door. They both looked sick- sweaty and pale. The virus was taking a toll on their immune systems. “What can we do to help?” Camille asked. 

“Are you sure you're feeling okay?,” I asked. 

“Well, sitting around doing nothing won't help, so I might as well try to help.” The 'while I'm still able to help' was almost implied from the wavering in her voice. 

“We just got the remainder of his research notes. We're trying to determine what antiviral will work against it,” I said, turning the laptop towards her. 

Kirsten reached for my hand, placing it in both of hers. “We should get you checked out by Ayo,” she said. I'm sure I wasn't fooling her. She had been glancing at me over the last hour, just like I had been checking on her too. We were both getting sick. 

“Alright,” I conceded. “But only if you get a check up too.”

“Seems fair enough.” 

“Well then, let's go Cupcake. Linus, we'll be right back.” He just nodded in response. 

We got to medical, which was surprisingly empty, with the exception of Ayo. She looked lost in thought at her computer. I cleared my throat, “Hi Ayo, can you give Kirsten a check up?”

“And Cameron,” she added. 

“Of course,” Ayo answered. She checked Kirsten's vitals first. “Kirsten your temperature is 101.3 degrees. Are you experiencing any symptoms?”

“Headache, muscle aches, fatigue.” Ayo just nodded in response, and started checking my vitals. 

“How are you doing Ayo? And everyone else?” I asked, while she was checking my blood pressure. 

“Nearly everyone else is experiencing symptoms of the virus. There was a rush after Camille, so I was just updating medical files when you two came in.”

“And you?” I asked, noticing she avoided the question the first time. 

“About the same as everyone else. Just a fever and headache so far.” She finished checking my vitals in silence. “You also have a fever of 100.9 degrees. Do you have any other symptoms?”

“Headache and muscle aches.” I paused for a moment, not really expecting a response, considering there was nothing she could do for us. “Princess, we should get back.” 

“Alright.” She got up and headed out of the medical bay. 

“Thank Ayo,” I said to her, taking a few quick strides to catch up with Kirsten. I might never get used to her. “Hey, wait up.”

“We need to figure this out.” 

“I know, we will.” We have to. 

We got back to the conference room. Linus was the first to notice. “Good, you're back. We could use some help going through the research notes,” handing us a hard copy of the notes. 

…

We worked in silence, all of us concentrating on the task at hand. Robert had tested two commercially available antivirals, but neither had success. 

“Guys,” Camille said, pulling up something on the screen. “They mapped the genetic sequence of the virus. That has to be helpful somehow, right?”

I noticed Kirsten furiously flipping through the pages. “Yes, that is helpful. I have a list of antivirals that Robert was planning on testing. His facility has four commercially available antivirals, and seven additional experimental antivirals... If we input the antiviral formulas into the quantum computer, it should be able to run scenarios against the genetic sequence to determine which one would counteract this particular strain.” 

“Kirsten, you're a genius,” I said. I pulled her up for a hug, spinning her around.

“I know,” she replied, which caused me to laugh into her blonde locks. 

“Come on, let's get this programmed into the computer so it can start simulations,” I said taking hold of her hand to rush over to the computer. 

 

… two hours later... 

 

The computer beeped, announcing it had finished running all the scenarios, going over all the variables. One of the experimental antivirals had a 99.0% chance of binding to the virus, to prevent it from entering cells. I quickly looked over the results of the other ten antivirals. The rest had less than a 25% chance of eliminating the virus. “Maggie!” I yelled. 

She rushed over. “What did you find out?”

“One of the experimental antivirals has a 99% chance of working. It's our best option. It's called RMS-213.”

“I'll get Detective Fisher on it right away,” as she left the room to call him. 

She was back within a few minutes. “Everyone, Detective Fisher is on his way here with the antiviral. He should be here in about thirty minutes. The biohazard team will be another hour behind Fisher for additional monitoring of our facility and to help with decontamination. So just hang tight until then.” A chorus of applauds and 'woo-hoos' rang through the lab. 

I turned towards Kirsten, pulling her in for another hug. “We're going to be okay,” I whispered into her hair. 

Then everything happened so quickly. Kirsten was getting worse, coughing. She was leaning on me for support. The next thing I knew, she passed out. I tightened my grip on her, and laid her down. 

No no no, this can't be happening. I can't lose her. “Princess, I need you to wake up.” I felt her forehead, she was burning up. “Come on Buttercup, stay with me.” I brushed the hair out of her face, caressing her cheek, willing her to wake up. “Kirsten please wake up.” She just had to wait it out a little bit longer, and Fisher would be here with the antiviral. 

“Mmm... Cameron?” I heard her say, her eyelids fluttering open. In an instant, my lips were on hers. A brief second later, she was moving her lips against mine. I reached my hand around her waist to the small of her back, pulling her closer to me. She ran her fingers through my hair, resting her hand on the back of my neck. I was the first one to pull away.

“I thought I'd lost you for a second.” 

“Nope. You can't get rid of me that easily.” She gave me a smile. She was beautiful when she smiled, _really_ smiled, and her eyes lit up. 

“Trust me, I wasn't planning on it.” 

“Besides, I have no intention of dying today,” she replied with a smirk. 

I pressed my lips to hers for one more quick kiss, before calling Ayo over. “Ayo, can you come here to look over Kirsten?” I helped her sit up, stabilizing her by placing my arm behind her back and resting my hand on her hip. 

Hopefully for the last time, Ayo checked her vitals. “Temperature of 103.1 degrees. Just hang on, and I'll get you some ice water,” she said walking away. 

 

… fifteen minutes later...

 

Maggie's phone rang. “Hi Detective Fisher.” She didn't put it on speaker, so we only heard her side of the conversation. 

“Great. There is a stair well for emergencies in the north west corner of the building. The entrance is inside a closet along the far right wall. There should be an access panel there.” 

“Okay. Try to override the controls.”

“Then you'll just have to pry open the door.” 

A few minutes passed. “Okay, good. We'll meet you in a minute.” She hung up the phone. 

“Anyone who can help pry open a door, come with me.” 

Tim from engineering was the first one to jump up, followed by myself and Linus. Maggie led us to an alcove near the break room. I didn't even know this was here, the way it was hidden at the end of a hallway.

“Alright, Fisher will be down in a few minutes. We need to open the door on our end so he can get into the lab.”

It took a minute, but we got it. If I'm being honest, Tim did most of the work. Although he had an unfair advantage, since he only started getting sick in the last hour. Linus and I had been sick for at least four hours by now. 

Another minute passed, and Fisher rushed in carrying a cooler. “Quick, let's get this to Ayo,” Maggie stated, ushering him to medical.


	7. Chapter 7

… Tuesday morning (two and a half days later)...

*Camille's POV*

The last few days were a blur. I had been pretty out of it on Saturday. When I woke up Sunday morning, Linus was asleep in the chair right beside me. He must have been watching over me while I slept. Ayo had noticed that I woke up before Linus did, and that's when she told me the good news. Detective Fisher had brought us the antiviral, and everyone was responding well to the treatment. 

The next few days were round the clock monitoring from the biohazard team, with blood work being done every six hours. The virus was contagious for 24-36 hours after exposure. And since Detective Fisher arrived late Saturday night, they had to keep us all quarantined here. Maggie had insisted that we stay until we had three consecutive cultures that were negative for the virus. Meanwhile, they were also decontaminating every inch of our lab, followed by tests to make sure no virus was present. 

We had finally gotten the all clear to leave the lab. Kirsten and I were in the locker room, changing into a new pair of scrubs after taking our last decontamination shower. Kirsten was her usual quiet self, and my thoughts were elsewhere... well yesterday at lunchtime to be exact. 

…

I had just finished going over my bloodwork with Ayo. She said my virus levels were almost undetectable, that I was going to be alright. It was a huge relief, like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I made my way to the break room, almost in a daze from the good news. I was going to be fine. 

I helped myself to an eggroll and sesame chicken with fried rice, and took a seat by myself at one of the small tables. At least we got food provided from the restaurant above while we were in quarantine. Once they got the elevator functioning again, they set up an anteroom at the elevator entrance so that the biohazard team could decontaminate to leave the facility. Lucky for us, so we didn't have to survive on just coffee for a few days. 

Linus entered the break room shortly after I did. He had gotten his bloodwork done right after I did. He got queasy at the sight of blood, so he spent as little time as possible in medical. That's also why I went to medical by myself. 

He walked up to my table. He didn't take a seat. I looked up at him with a curious expression. I could tell something was on his mind, the way he nervously fidgeted with his hands, the way he looked up at me as if he was about to say something, then stopped himself and looked back down at his hands again. So I waited. 

Maybe thirty seconds had passed before he spoke. “Camille,” he started. “I was wondering if... after we're out of quarantine of course, if you would maybe... consider going out with me... on a date?” He paused for a few seconds. “To be clear, as a more than friends with benefits type of date.” 

“Yes,” I replied simply, smiling at him. 

“I've had some time to think, and this brush with death really makes you think about what you want in life, you know? So before you say no- wait, did you say yes?” He rushed out in what seemed like one breath. He was cute when he got flustered. 

“Yes Linus, I will go out with you,” I said, giving him an even bigger smile. 

“Okay then. Dinner? Whenever we get out of here.” 

“Yes, dinner would be nice.” 

… 

Linus had stopped me earlier this morning, after we had gotten the news that we were getting out of quarantine today, after one final round of decontamination. He wanted to know if we could go to dinner tonight. I gave him an alternative date proposition- spend the afternoon together, maybe see a movie, then dinner. He seemed to like that plan better. I just made a mental note to check if Kirsten was going out with Cameron tonight, since I had promised to help her get ready. 

The door to the locker room slammed shut, pulling me out of my thoughts. Kirsten and I had just finished changing. “Hey, before we go out there, can I ask you something?” 

“You just did ask me something,” she declared, turning towards the door. 

“Wait. Can we please talk for a minute?,” I clarified. She waited, so I took that as incentive to continue. “I was just wondering if you were going out with Cameron tonight?” 

“I don't know yet, I haven't asked.”

“Well the reason I'm asking, is that I'm spending the day with Linus. So I wanted to know if you needed my assistance in getting ready tonight? We're going out to dinner later, so I'll probably be home to change anyways.” Kirsten's face was stoic, making it impossible for me to have any indication as to what she was thinking; but that was typical Kirsten. She was waiting, so I elaborated. “How about I come home at 6pm to help you get ready. Text me if anything changes?” 

“Alright, that seems reasonable.”

The conversation seemed to reach it's natural endpoint. This time, I was the one to walk past her towards the door, when I heard her voice. “Hey, have a good time with Linus today.” 

“Thank you. You too, with Cameron.” I could tell she was trying, she wasn't exactly used to being close friends with anyone. Or for that matter, being friends in the first place. I linked my hand underneath her elbow, leading us out of the locker room. “Come on, let's go find the boys.”

We exited the locker room, practically crashing into Linus and Cameron as they were leaving the men's locker room. 

 

*Kirsten's POV*

I was inches away from Cameron's face, after bumping into them on our way out of the locker room. I felt the warmth rush to my cheeks, which was beginning to be a common reaction whenever I was near Cameron. He had been unusually quiet the last few days, ever since he kissed me. We spent time together of course since we were quarantined in a small space together. Most of it was comfortable silence, making small talk at meals or when we went to medical together for our routine bloodwork. Now that I think about it, he hardly left me alone since I got sick, always by my side. But there was a nagging sensation that I couldn't explain, I needed to know why he was acting so strangely. He was still calling me by the cute nicknames- princess, cupcake, and sunshine being the most prominent nicknames, so I figured he would tell me when he wanted to. 

I heard Camille speak, which interrupted my thoughts and caused me to take the smallest step back. “Linus, let's go talk plans for today,” she said to him. I saw her mouth 'ask him to dinner' at me, before leading Linus away to leave us alone. 

Cameron smiled at me, then looked down nervously. I waited for a moment, or what I could imagine was a moment, waiting to see if Cameron would speak first. He didn't. “So I was-,” I started, just as Cameron said “Hey so-.” We laughed, and then both said “go ahead” at the same time. 

“Princess, why don't you go first,” he insisted as he smiled again. 

Smiling around Cameron must be contagious, since the corners of my mouth turned upwards as well. “So about that raincheck...” I started. 

“Yeah?” he replied. He looked at me, then down and back up again.

It reminded me of the time he had asked if I was okay with coworkers dating, after discovering that Camille and Linus were sleeping together. I decided that it was cute, that hopeful look he gave me when he was unsure of what I would say next. Realizing that he was still waiting for me to speak, I continued. “Would you like to go to dinner tonight?”

“Buttercup, I would love to take you to dinner,” giving me an almost impossibly larger smile. “Do you want me to pick you up at 7pm still?”

“Yes, that would be great.” I glanced at my peripheral vision, we were still alone in the hallway. I took a step closer, so that I was only inches away from Cameron again. I saw a flash of surprise in his eyes. Before I could stop myself, I placed both my hands on his shoulders and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. When I stepped back, the shock in his eyes was completely gone, replaced with a look of affection and happiness. “Come on, let's go girlfriend,” I declared, and I saw him roll his eyes at that last word. I gave him another smirk and led him towards the main lab. 

We caught up with Camille and Linus in the main area. They were making plans for their date today, oblivious to our arrival. Linus was going on about some new super hero movie, while Camille pouted and said there was a comedy she wanted to see. The way Linus was looking at her, I could see that she might get her way. She seemed to have that affect on men. 

I dared to look up at Cameron. As soon as I did, I could feel my cheeks blush again. He must have a similar response being around me, because I noticed that his cheeks were flush as well. I studied him, no longer seeing the underlying tension that was present the last few days. He seemed... happy. 

I heard a door close in the distance. Maggie and Ayo entered from the medical bay. I assumed their smiles were a good thing. My assumption was confirmed when Maggie said, “Alright everyone, you're all clear to leave. There are no traces of the virus left.” The energy of the room suddenly lifted, and everyone had smiles plastered on their faces. 

I saw the biohazard team out of the corner of my eye, they were taking down the makeshift anteroom by the elevator and removing their biohazard suits. 

Camille, as usual, was the first to speak up. “So, since our weekend was interrupted...” she trailed off. 

“Everyone take the rest of the day off, through tomorrow. See you all on Thursday.” 

“Awesome,” Camille said mostly to herself, although the three of us heard her. 

People started filing towards the elevator. With this many people though, it would take a few trips before we all could leave. Just as well, I needed to grab my bag from my locker. Before I could turn to go back to the locker room, I was suddenly aware of Cameron next to me. He placed his hand on my hip and brought his lips to my ear. “Princess,” he whispered. “Can I give you a ride home?,” pulling away after finishing his question. I exhaled, not realizing that I had involuntarily held my breath. 

“Yes, thank you,” I answered. “Let me just grab my bag?”

“Sure thing,” he replied, releasing his hand from my hip. “I'll be right here.” 

“K,” was my only response as I left. 

We took the elevator and walked to his convertible in silence. He rushed forward to the passenger's side, to open the door for me. This is a new development, but didn't voice my thoughts on the matter. “Thank you,” was all I said. 

“You're welcome,” he said after closing my door and rounding the car to the driver's side. 

He backed out of his parking space, and started driving towards my place. 

I couldn't place this feeling I had in the pit of my stomach... was it nervousness? Or something else? I thought about Cameron dropping me off, coming to the realization that I didn't want to be alone. 

We were only a block away from work. “Actually... can we go back to your place?,” I asked, looking to my hands in my lap to avoid his gaze. Why was my stomach doing that, the way it seemed to flip flop, despite the fact that I knew that it couldn't possibly do that. I thought back to a conversation I had with Camille a few weeks ago. She had just started sleeping with Linus, and wanted to talk about her feelings. That led to a conversation about love, and she asked if I ever had that feeling... the butterflies in my stomach kind of feeling. Was that what I'm experiencing now? These pesky feelings would be the end of me... well correction, the pesky feelings whenever I was around Cameron would be the end of me. 

Cameron just gawked at me. “Cameron! Eyes on the road!” He quickly looked back at the road, very intently. He gripped the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles were turning white. Why was he doing that? 

We got another two blocks down the road, and he still hadn't answered my question. 

“We can even watch Doctor Who,” I added. 

“Alright,” he said cautiously as he loosened his grip ever so slightly on the steering wheel. 

I wondered if I would ever understand emotions. One moment, he was happy around me. The next, he looked absolutely terrified. Maybe I would ask Camille about it tonight when she would help me get ready for my date. 

The next intersection, he turned left towards his place instead of continuing straight for my house. 

My phone chirped in my bag. It was Camille. _So... are you going to dinner with Cameron tonight?_ Right, I had forgotten to tell her. 

_Yes, he's picking me up for dinner at 7 tonight. I'll meet you at the house at 6._ I had texted back. Yes, I would definitely ask for her expert opinion on how Cameron was behaving. It helped to have a friend that I could ask about these things. 

_You'll meet me? Won't you be there already?_ She responded.

_No. We're hanging out at his place today._

_Ooooh, have fun with Doctor Cutie ;-)_ Which caused me to giggle for a second. Well, she was helpful sometimes... now was not one of them. Cameron glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. Feeling the need to explain, or rather that he wanted an explanation, I simply said “Camille.” 

He drove the rest of the way in silence. After he parked, I reached my hand for the door. “No, I'll get that,” he said rushing around the car again. 

“Such a gentleman.” That response seemed to ease some of the tension that had been present since I asked to come over to his place. 

He even opened the front door to his building for me. 

We entered the elevator and he pressed 7 for his floor. He stepped back and our arms were touching. I shifted my hand, placing it in his and interlocking our fingers as we waited for the elevator to arrive at his floor. I didn't look at him, but could see the huge smile on his face which caused me to smile. Yes, it must be contagious. Maybe I would ask Camille about that too...


	8. Chapter 8

*Kirsten's POV*

We walked into his apartment, still hand in hand. I surveyed his apartment right as Cameron let go of my hand and he said, “I guess with everything at work I forgot about bro night.” There was chips and assorted dips, pretzels, empty beer cans, a pizza box, and plates on his coffee table and surrounding his couch. 

“Bro night?,” I inquired, raising an eyebrow as I looked at Cameron. 

“Yeah, Linus and Tim were over Friday night. I didn't get a chance to clean up before Maggie texted. And then the whole quarantine situation... Will you give me a minute?”

“Sure... actually can you get me something to change into first?,” I asked, making a gesture at the scrubs I was wearing. 

“Right, of course,” as he rushed into his bedroom. I wandered into his kitchen. There were some remnants of bro night here too- a few beer cans, a bag of tortilla chips, and a jar of salsa. I glanced at the clock on the oven, 10:15am. Cameron was only gone two minutes when he emerged from his bedroom, as it was now 10:17. He had taken the time to change out of his scrubs also. He had on a blue plaid button up shirt and a pair of dark gray jeans. “There is a change of clothes out on my bed. Take your time, and I'll clean up out here.”

“Thank you,” I said with a smile. When I got to his bedroom, I saw that I had two options for clothes set out on his bed. My options were a pair of light gray sweatpants with a maroon MIT t-shirt with gray lettering, or a pair of flannel navy shorts with a light blue long sleeved shirt. This was summer in Los Angeles after all, so it wouldn't be cold outside. I opted for a mix of the two- I changed into the MIT shirt with the navy shorts, discarding the pair of scrubs in his laundry bin. I placed the remaining options on his dresser, since I was unsure as to which drawer they belonged. 

I heard various noises coming from the living room- rattling of beer cans hitting each other, and a crinkling from a bag. Cameron was still cleaning up. I crossed his bedroom to quietly open his door as to not disturb him. I figured that he would find me when he was done cleaning up. 

I did say that we could watch Doctor Who, which I had actually never watched before. I'm sure Cameron will insist on a marathon when he finds out. So I sat cross legged on top of his comforter, reached for the remote on his nightstand and pulled up Netflix on his smart TV. I browsed through his 'Watch It Again' tab, figuring I would find it there. I saw Star Trek, Agents of Shield, The Walking Dead, Fringe, Sherlock, Firefly, Mad Men, Lost, American Horror Story. Ah there it is- Doctor Who. I read the brief description. The most recent seven series were available to watch. I'm sure Cameron would catch me up on the prior fifty years of the series, if there was anything major that I should know about. I highlighted the first episode so it would be ready to start as soon as he finished cleaning up. Content with myself, I extended my legs out and fluffed up the pillow behind me to lean against it, resting my eyes. 

“Hey, you're not falling asleep on me, are you?” I heard. Cameron was leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. I glanced at his alarm clock- 10:22am. So I definitely didn't fall asleep. 

“No,” I answered bluntly. 

“So, what are you doing in here?” He ran his fingers through his hair and glanced down at his feet. He was nervous. 

I picked up the remote, waving it to show him. “I thought we could watch Doctor Who. It was my suggestion after all.” 

“We don't _have_ to watch Doctor Who.” Now he was fidgeting with his hands, obviously nervous. I wondered why I made him nervous...

“Well, I've never watched Doctor Who. And you've talked about it on numerous occasions.”

“Wait a minute. You've never watched Doctor Who?” He took a few steps into his bedroom, and went on about the premise behind the show and how the Doctor regenerated, therefore creating the next Doctor. He elaborated with his favorite season, and which actor was his favorite Doctor. He was so excited, I could tell it was one of his favorite shows. I probably could have listened to him talk about it all day. But I noticed the silence in the room, he had stopped talking. 

“So that's a yes then? For Doctor Who,” I offered with a smile. 

“Yeah, sure Princess... Do you want anything? Something to drink, or popcorn maybe?” 

“I'm good. Thank you though.” I patted the empty space on his bed, inviting him to sit down with me. 

“I... uh... do have a TV in the living room, if you'd rather watch it there?” He seemed agitated again. I might never understand him. 

“I'm comfortable here,” I replied with a shrug. 

But he wasn't moving from where he stood. I was unsure as to why he seemed indecisive. It's not like we haven't sat in his bed before, as I thought back to when he told me about Marta. Although that was work related. I had even woken up here, the day after I met him... although that was work related as well. Maybe the change to an intimate setting was throwing him off...

“I won't bite, I promise,” I said hoping to ease his tension. It must have been an acceptable premise, because he nodded and walked to the other side of the bed to sit next to me. I noted that he didn't sit right next to me, but a few inches away. 

“So, is it okay to start with this series? With the ninth Doctor, right?” I inquired, pointing at the screen. 

“Yeah. Besides, I've been meaning to buy the earlier seasons on DVD.” 

I pressed play on the remote and set it back on the nightstand. 

A few minutes into the first episode, I shifted my body over an inch. I couldn't understand why he seemed tense again. After all, I did promise not to bite. 

The scene changed again on the show, and I shifted over another inch. He glanced over at me, but didn't comment. “Cameron, I said I wouldn't bite,” I said patting the gap that was still between us. He strained a smile, and moved over so that he was right next to me. I waited for him to relax, but I didn't see that happening anytime soon. Knowing he could see me since he was still glancing at me, I rolled my eyes and took his right hand in mine so I could place his arm around me. “There, much better.” I smiled up at him, then leaned in against him. That comment must have calmed him, since he seemed to relax. I rested my hand above his knee and occasionally drew random patterns there. Just as he caressed my shoulder with his thumb from time to time. I was acutely aware of the tingling sensation I felt beneath his hand when he did that. I wondered if I had the same effect on him... 

We sat that way for the first two episodes, content to just cuddle. As the credits were rolling on the second episode, Cameron pulled me in closer and kissed my hair. “Hey,” he started, and I looked up at him. “Would you want to order lunch?,” he asked.

“Sure... as long as it's not Chinese.” That comment caused him to chuckle for a second. I had enough Chinese food for a while after eating it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner the last three days. I quickly reached for the remote and paused the show, so that we could resume it after lunch. 

“Come on, we can order from a great pizza place nearby. I have their menu in the kitchen,” he said pulling me up from the bed. I noticed that he didn't let go of my hand as we walked to his kitchen. It was nice, comforting even. 

He reached for the menu out of one of the drawers, releasing my hand. My hand seemed almost cold at the loss. Once he found the one he was looking for, he placed his hand in the small of my back and pulled me close. 

“What do you like on your pizza?,” he asked. 

I skimmed over the menu, pointing at one of the specialty pizzas. “I like the Hawaiian pizza,” I offered. 

“Pineapple?... On a pizza?,” he questioned. I could see him visibly scrunch his nose at that suggestion. 

“What? I like it.” I playfully swatted his chest. “Well what do you usually order?” 

He pointed to a different specialty pizza. “I get the Supreme Pizza.” 

I read the description. It had pepperoni, sausage, ham, mushrooms, green peppers, black olives, and onions. It sounded good, until the onions. “Onions?... On a pizza?” I gave him a look that mirrored his just a moment ago. 

“Come on, you have to try it,” he pleaded. 

“But I don't like onions,” I stated.

“Please?” The overly dramatic sad eyes he gave me reminded of a look Camille had given Linus on a number of occasions. I asked her about it once, she said the puppy dog eyes always did the trick when she wanted her way. 

I guess I could pick off the onions. “Alright, I'll try it... If you agree to try the Hawaiian pizza,” I countered. 

He thought about it. “Deal.” He pulled me in closer and kissed my forehead. “I'll call it in.”

“Actually, I'm going to use your restroom,” I said, kissing his cheek before leaving. 

…

I walked back out into his living room. Cameron was lounging in the corner of his couch with his arms extended out. 

“Hey Princess. Food will be here within forty five minutes.”

“Thanks.” I sat down right beside him, leaning into his arms. I wrapped my arm around his waist and he pulled me in closer. I don't know how long we stayed like that, but it felt completely natural to me. Which is strange, because I've never felt that way before. I've always had to remind myself to show affection with Liam, to hold his hand or kiss him goodbye before leaving for school or work. After my first two boyfriends had broken up with me for being cold and distant, I caught on that showing affection is important in a relationship. But it was different with Cameron, I didn't have to try. 

“This is nice,” speaking aloud what I had already internalized. Except that must have been the wrong thing to say, because I felt his muscles stiffen in our embrace. I was almost afraid of what he might say, but I was concerned about his change in demeanor. “What?,” I asked turning to look at him. 

 

*Cameron's POV*

Why did I have to screw up everything? We were having a perfectly nice time, great even. But I had this nagging at the back of my mind ever since she asked me out, and I guess this was my subconscious's way of telling me to figure it out. 

“Cameron, are you alright?,” she asked. The concern on her face was apparent. 

I think she had already picked up on some of my earlier hesitancy. What's the worst that could happen? This could blow up in my face and I could ruin a chance with the girl of my dreams. Well, it's now or never. “It's just... I mean... Kirsten, what are we doing?”

“I thought we were having a nice time... or at least I was...” she trailed off. She looked confused now. 

Crap, good job ruining it already. “I'm having a great time, Cupcake.” I noticed an almost impossibly small smile at the nickname. I lifted her chin up so she was looking at me. “I really am.” 

“Okay then, what did you mean? Because I'm not sure I'm following.” 

Fair enough, I wasn't very clear. I shifted my hand so I was cupping her cheek. “It's just... you asked me out on a date. I guess I'm just confused because you were dating Liam a week ago.” 

“You want to know what happened between me and Liam?” 

I didn't really want to know. “I think that would help me understand.” 

“Well,” she started. She moved back a little bit and removed her arms from around me, to face me at a more direct angle. “Liam proposed. I thought about it. I said no.”

I didn't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't that. Wow, Liam had proposed. But she said no, so that must mean something. “Did you love him?,” was the only question I could come up with. 

“I talked to Camille about that. I didn't love him, at least not how he loved me. And he was expecting the girl I was two years ago.” She was fidgeting with her hands in her lap. I placed one of my hands over hers to comfort her. 

“So... are you over him?,” I asked curiously. I had to know before going any further with us. 

“It's like we've always been broken up.” She shrugged. Of course it was. 

“I guess I just didn't want what's happening here,” motioning between the two of us, “to be a rebound relationship.”

“With my condition, I think it's impossible for me to rebound.” She smiled at me, and took my hand in hers to interlock our fingers. 

“So then, with us... did you just want something casual... or?” My heart was pounding in my chest. 

“By casual, do you mean like friends with benefits? Like Camille and Linus?” She honestly looked confused. “Is that what you want?” 

“I asked you first,” I replied with a smile. I wanted to know how she felt. I didn't want the knowledge of my feelings to affect how she felt. 

“Well... I don't really do the casual relationship thing. Which is why I asked you out on a date... Is that okay?” She started to back away, as if unsure of what I wanted. I needed to show her that I wasn't unsure of my feelings for her. 

“Hey, come here.” I pulled her closer with our interlaced hands and ran my fingers through her silky hair with my other hand. “I don't think I could do casual either. Kirsten, I really like you.” I leaned in for a quick, sweet kiss. 

“I really like you too.” She gave me one of those rare, genuine smiles that I was growing to love. “So we're good?”

“Yeah, we're good.” I caressed her hand with my thumb

“I'm glad, girlfriend,” she teased. 

I was never going to live down that nickname. I playfully rolled my eyes at her. “You know, you should really come up with a new nickname for me, Princess.” 

“What about... boyfriend?” She looked hopeful. Despite our conversation, she still wanted to confirm my feelings for her. 

I smiled widely at her. “I like the sound of that, girlfriend.” 

This time, she kissed me. Her lips were soft and sweet, moving in sync with mine. She let go of my hand to wrap both of hers around my neck. My hands went around her waist, pulling her into my lap. Her fingers ran through my hair, deepening our kiss. My hands went up and down her back, resting at the small of her back again. I tried to pull her closer. She moved her leg across my lap so she was straddling me now. I pulled away to look at her. Her gorgeous hazel eyes had so much love and desire in them. I placed a trail of kisses down her jaw and neck, bringing her closer to me.

“Cameron,” she whispered. I could definitely get used to hearing my name like that, the intimate way she said it. 

“Cameron,” she said louder, pushing me away slightly. “I think the food's here.”

“What?” That's when I heard it, a set of knocks at the door. “Oh right, lunch.”

She laughed, moving herself to the other side of the couch as I rushed to the door.


	9. Chapter 9

*Camille's POV*

I had just gotten home to get ready for my date tonight and to help Kirsten, but I was a little early. “Kirsten?,” I called out. No response. I glanced at the clock- 5:46pm. Good, I had enough time to start to get outfit options out for Kirsten. 

I rushed into the bathroom to plug in the curling iron for her, checking my reflection in the mirror. I scrunched my own curls, smiling that they were still intact from this morning after the last decontamination shower. One less thing to check off my mental to do list. I applied a little bit of blush, refreshed my eyeliner and mascara, and swiped on a rose lip gloss in record time. 

I walked into my bedroom to pick out clothes. I had a few options in mind for Kirsten. If I left the decision up to her, she would end up looking like a real estate agent again. I removed two dresses from my closet, laying them on my bed. I really hoped she would like the royal blue dress with spaghetti straps, fitted up top and flowing out from the hips and resting just above the knee. The second dress was maroon with a halter neckline and asymmetrical hem that came up higher on the left leg. If she wanted something a little more casual, then I'd need options for those. I rifled through my closet again, deciding on a black skirt. Now for the tops... settling on a gold tank top with criss-cross straps on the back and a white tank top with silver trim around the neck and at the bottom. 

I looked at my phone, 5:58pm. She should be home soon. But until then, I might as well get ready. I changed into a pair of black lacey shorts. I was absentmindedly going through my tops, trying to decide on one. I thought back on my day with Linus. He was so sweet. He had taken me to a park for a picnic lunch, saying it would be less crowded (and therefore more romantic) than a picnic at the beach. He had packed sandwiches, fruit, wine, and cookies from the one bakery that I loved. We had a really nice time, just talking and laughing for hours. Then we went to an early afternoon showing of the comedy that I wanted to see. Despite his hesitation, he really enjoyed the movie too. I did promise, since we had off tomorrow too, that we could go see that super hero movie he wanted to see. By the time the movie had gotten out, Linus dropped me off at my place so I could get ready for dinner. We were keeping it relatively low key tonight, he was taking me to my favorite Indian restaurant that had the best curry in Los Angeles. Maybe this dating thing wouldn't be half bad after all. 

I decided on one of my favorite tank tops- a light purple tank top with delicate gold swirl patterns. 

I heard keys at the door, Kirsten must be home. It's about time she was home, it was 6:10pm. I quickly changed into the purple tank top, rushing out into the living room. 

I was thrown off by what I saw in the living room. Kirsten and Cameron were making out in the doorway. I don't think I've ever seen her show affection with anyone, not even Liam. And no offense to Cameron, but Liam was much more delicious. 

They did not notice that I was here at all. Cameron was backing her up against the wall, running his hand beneath her shirt at the small of her back. I cleared my throat and they broke apart. “Hey wonder twins. How's it going?” 

“Hey Camille,” Cameron said without looking at me. He brought his hand back around her waist, gazing lovingly at her. She looked genuinely happy with a huge smile on her face. They were so cute together, I almost didn't want to take Kirsten away from him. 

“Kirsten, did you want help getting ready?” 

“Yeah. Thank you,” she replied. Except she wasn't moving from Cameron's side. 

I walked over to her, reaching for her shoulder. “Girl time,” I said towards Cameron, shooing him away with my other hand. He kissed her forehead before letting me lead her away. 

“I'll be back at 7, Princess.” He closed the door behind him. What a gentleman. 

He was barely gone for a second, when I hugged her closer as we walked towards the back. “So spill. You and Cameron?”

“Yes,” she replied simply. She did not understand the meaning of girl time... at all. 

“Well, what did you do today? Where is he taking you for dinner?,” I elaborated. We got to my bedroom, and I picked up the blue dress. “Here, try this on,” and handed it to her.

She started changing, while I went to my closet again. The last thing I needed was shoes. Kirsten was still silent. “So, you and Cameron?,” I reiterated. 

“We watched Doctor Who all afternoon. We ordered pizza in for lunch. He's taking me to an Italian restaurant by his place for dinner. Oh, and he's my boyfriend now.”

“Wait, what? How did that happen?” I grabbed a pair of black stilettos from my closet and slipped them on. Simple yet sexy. 

“He wanted to know what happened with Liam, so I told him. Then he asked if I wanted something casual, which I don't really do. He didn't want that either. So we're dating.” 

“You told him that Liam proposed?” I can't imagine that he took that well. But it's probably for the best that he knew the truth. 

“Yes... I said that I didn't love him.” She zipped up the back of the dress and turned around. 

“Kirsten, that looks amazing on you. Come here.” I pulled her to the full length mirror on the back of my closet door. 

“Wow,” she exhaled and ran her hands over the fabric. 

“You're definitely wearing that. Now, I need to do your hair.” She followed me into the bathroom. “Sit,” I said pointing at the toilet with the seat down. I started curling her hair. It should only take about ten minutes, if I worked as quickly as I did the last time. Then just to add a touch of make up. 

“Can I ask you something? About Cameron.”

“Go for it,” I stated. 

“Well, it's just that I'm new to this whole emotion thing. I can't figure out why I terrify him.”

“He's scared of you? I need more information to go off of.” I picked up the next section of hair, running the comb through it before curling it. 

“Well he offered to give me a ride home earlier, and he seemed happy. Then I asked him if we could go to his place, and he had a death grip on his steering wheel. I don't understand it.”

“This was before your boyfriend/girlfriend talk then?” 

“Yes,” she said with a sigh. 

“Has he looked terrified after you had the talk?” I wondered if she would come to the realization on her own... 

“No, I don't think so.” 

I worked in silence for a minute. I was almost done with her hair. “Kirsten, I think he was only scared because he really likes you and was afraid that he might get hurt if you didn't feel the same. He was protecting himself, until he knew.”

“Oh,” was all she said. I grabbed the hair spray and lightly misted her curls. “I guess that makes sense.” 

“There.” I picked up the eyeshadow pallet. She liked to keep it relatively neutral, so that's what I was going with. “Eyes closed please.” 

I was blending the two shades, going a little darker on the outside. “Camille?,” she asked. 

“Hmm?”

“Why is it that smiling seems contagious around Cameron?”

“Well, you like him.”

“And the blushing when I'm around him, and the fluttering feeling I get in my stomach. I've never had that feeling with anyone. That's because I like him?” 

“Open and look up please,” as I applied a light coat of mascara. “My dear Kirsten, I think you might love him.”

Her face fell suddenly. I did not want to be the reason she broke poor Cameron's heart, by scaring her off now. “Hey, I'm just saying it's a possibility. You don't have to marry the guy tonight. K?” 

“Okay,” she said softly. “How was your date with Linus today?” She was definitely done talking about Cameron, since she changed the subject. 

“It was great,” I said with a smile. “We had a picnic in the park, and went to see a movie. He's taking me out to my favorite Indian restaurant for curry tonight.”

“That's great. You love curry.” She gave me a small smile. Hopefully that love comment wasn't bothering her anymore. 

“Yeah, it was Linus's idea. Tomorrow we're going to see a super hero movie, and his favorite Mexican restaurant.” Lastly, I applied a coral lip gloss to finish the look. “All done. Go put on those silver flats, and you can borrow a matching clutch I have.” 

She just nodded and walked to her room. 

I heard a few knocks at the door. I took one last look in the mirror, satisfied with my outfit and went to answer it. “Kirsten, you finish getting ready. I'll get that.” 

I glanced at my phone, it was only 6:50pm. Huh, lover boy must be anxious for their date. It was sweet really. I opened the door for Cameron. 

“Hi Camille,” he said running a hand through his hair. He looked devilishly handsome in that suit. And that tie, royal blue with silver and white stripes. I definitely picked the right dress for her, unknowingly matching what Cameron would be wearing. 

“Looking sharp, lover boy.” 

“Thanks. Is uh- Kirsten ready?” 

“Almost. I'll go check on her.” 

I rushed into my room to grab that silver clutch. I knocked lightly on her door, and entered. “Hey there, you almost ready? Here's that clutch you can borrow.” 

“Thanks.” She dug through her messenger bag, grabbing her wallet and transferred it to the clutch. 

She seemed unusually quiet, and I noticed the quickest hint of fear cross her face. “Hey, is everything okay?” She didn't respond, she just fiddled with the clutch. “Is this about what I said earlier? About you loving Cameron?”

She didn't say anything, just focused her gaze at the floor. I sat down next to her on the bed, wrapping my arm around her shoulder. “Hey, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pried.” 

She shrugged her shoulders. “How do people do this?” I tilted my head slightly at her question. “Love.” 

“It's complicated sometimes... But it's the best feeling in the world.” I squeezed her in a little closer. “He loves you too, you know.” 

“You think so?” 

“I know so.” Now seemed as good of a time as any to tell her about my plan, which I never actually got to implement. “Hey, wanna know a secret? Linus and I were trying to come up with a plan to get you two together, since it was so obvious how you both felt about each other. But then you had to ruin it when you asked him out,” I said with a light laugh. She started to smile. 

“Hey Camille?”

“Yeah.” 

“Thank you.” She brought her arms around my back and pulled me in for a quick hug. “For everything.” 

“Of course.” I pulled back from her grip. “Now how about we get you to your hot date with Prince Charming?” 

She just nodded and followed me out of her bedroom.


	10. Chapter 10

*Cameron's POV*

I was waiting for Kirsten to finish getting ready, when I heard a door close in the back of her house. I ran my fingers through my hair, nervous for our first official date. At least we had gotten the awkward relationship conversation out of the way already today, so there was nothing left for us to do but have a nice time. 

I had been looking down at the floor, another nervous habit. When I looked up, I was not prepared for the beautiful woman that was walking towards me. I'm sure that Camille lent her that dress, but it fit her perfectly and hugged her curves. Her hair was curled and framed her face. “You look,” I started, searching for the right words... “absolutely stunning, Sunshine.” I couldn't help it with that nickname. She really did look like sunshine, the way she radiated. It was almost as if she was in perfect focus, and the rest of the world fell away... unable to pale in comparison. 

She walked closer to me, and my heart began to beat faster in my chest. She didn't stop until she was right in front of me. She gently placed her hand over my heart and my hands went instinctively around her waist. “And you look... very handsome, Boyfriend.” The playful tone in her voice was captivating, intoxicating even. I wonder if she even knew the effect she was having on me.

“Hey love birds, do you mind?,” Camille asked. 

“Hmm?,” I replied. 

“You're kind of blocking the door.” I could see Camille out of the corner of my eye, with her hands on her hips, impatiently waiting. 

“Oh right.” I pulled Kirsten a little closer to me. “You ready to go to dinner Princess?” 

She nodded in response, and I reached for the front door while shifting my grip to the small of her back with the other hand. 

“Have fun you two. And don't do anything I wouldn't do. Which isn't much,” Camille said laughing, almost whispering the last few words. I could feel the redness creeping up on my cheeks. When I glanced at Kirsten, Camille had the same effect on her as well. 

Kirsten didn't look back at Camille as she said, “Have a nice time with Linus tonight.” 

I led her to my car, already forgetting about Camille's blunt comment, that I'm sure she intended for us to hear. I opened the car door for her. 

“Thank you.” She smiled at me and caressed my arm, as she sat down in my car. 

“Any time, Sweetheart.” She raised an eyebrow at me, but didn't say anything. I closed the door and went around to the driver's side. 

“So...” she started, as I turned the ignition on. “Sweetheart, huh? That's a new one.” 

“Yeah,” I said cautiously, glancing at her as I started driving. 

“Well,” she trailed off. My breathing hitched in my throat, suddenly panicking. She must have noticed my reaction. “Relax, I like it... Honey.” She placed her hand above my knee, gently drawing circles there. I knew she meant for it to relax me, but it only made my heart beat faster. After a few minutes, her soothing touch did eventually calm me. 

“So, I made us reservations for 7:30.” I felt the need to fill the silence in the car, although it wasn't uncomfortable silence necessarily. 

“That's so nice of you,” she said. Her tone seemed genuine, unlike the numerous occasions where she faked sincerity on work cases. I've been starting to recognize the slight differences in her tone of voice. I couldn't think of a single instance... not since the Lisa Keller case, where she used her fake sincerity around me. It was comforting, to know that she was warming up to me. 

“Yeah, well it's a relatively new restaurant. I'm actually surprised I got a reservation for tonight on such short notice.” It helped that I could use the influence of my name to get a reservation, one of the benefits of having wealthy parents. But Kirsten didn't need to know that. Not that she would be one of _those_ girls, ones that suddenly got more interested in me when they realized my family had money. 

I placed my hand over top of hers, and drove the rest of the way in silence. I pulled up to the valet and waited for an attendant. My car's clock said 7:20pm, so we made it in plenty of time. I got out of the car quickly, and rushed around to get Kirsten's door. I offered her my hand, and I noticed that she reached out for mine before she even looked up. The gesture caused a warmth to spread across my chest, making me fall even harder for her. “You ready Cupcake?” 

She grabbed her purse, and nodded in acknowledgment. She smiled warmly at me, and I couldn't help but smile back. 

The hostess greeted us immediately. “Good evening. How many?” 

“Cameron Goodkin, reservation for two.” 

She skimmed through the notes, seemingly finding what she was looking for. “Ah yes. Right this way.” She led us to a small table in the back corner of the restaurant. I requested a private intimate setting, and they delivered. She set the menus down, and excused herself. 

I pulled out the chair for Kirsten, gesturing with my hands for her to sit. She gave me an odd look, but sat down. It wasn't until I sat that she spoke. “Cameron,” she whispered. “This is a really fancy place. You didn't have to take me here.” She looked more worried than anything. Maybe she had never been to a five star restaurant for a first date. If I was being honest with myself, this wasn't my usual move for a first date. Although this was Kirsten and nothing about her was usual, so I wanted a memorable first date. 

“I know. But I wanted to.” I comforted her by interlacing our fingers and lightly stroked her thumb with mine. She seemed to relax into my touch. 

The waitress came up to our table, and introduced herself, although I wasn't really paying attention. I heard the tail end of the sentence. She had suggested a bottle of red wine. “Yeah, that would be great,” I replied. She simply nodded and left. 

“So, what were you thinking of ordering?,” I inquired while leaning a little closer. 

She browsed the menu, pointing at a selection. “The Chicken Parmesan. What about you?” 

I carefully weighed the options, thinking about a filet mignon pasta dish. “I-” just as I was cut off by the waitress.

“Here are your drinks,” she said, filling our wine glasses and setting the bottle on the table. “Were you ready to order, or did you need a few minutes?” 

I caressed her hand again, giving her a questioning look. She just smiled in response, so I took that as a yes. I answered for the both of us. “We're ready. Ladies first,” giving her a reassuring smile. She lightly blushed at the comment. One thing was for certain, I was falling harder by the minute with her. 

We placed our orders, and the waitress said she would be right back with our salads. 

We made comfortable small talk while we waited on the food. Kirsten admitted that she actually really liked Doctor Who, despite not watching much TV. I suggested several different series that we could watch- Torchwood, Firefly, and Sherlock. She laughed and said we should finish Doctor Who first.

The waitress brought us our salads, and I released her hand so we could eat, almost amazed that she didn't pull back earlier. 

The conversation drifted to high school and college, which led to horror stories about college roommates. Kirsten lucked out because she always had a single dorm, although there was an underlying sorrow in her tone and I internally wondered if she had many friends before working for the Stitchers program. Rather than dwell on that possibility, I shared a story about my roommate Josh in freshman year at MIT. He constantly brought girls over with little regard to my studying, one night in particular during finals week. He thought I wasn't there (I was sleeping under the covers) and they were right in the middle of it when I woke up, realized what was going on and bolted out of the room. He usually had the decency to text me beforehand, but for some reason forgot that night. Kirsten said her first roommate was Camille, and shared the story of her drunken and very loud escapades with her opti-genetics TA. Apparently Camille had forgotten to close her bedroom door. 

Our entrees arrived, and we continued to laugh and talk. I poured Kirsten another large glass of wine, and a small glass for myself to finish off the bottle. After all, I would be driving us home later. 

She just gawked at me, her mouth open. “Why Doctor Goodkin, are you trying to get me drunk?,” pointing out the visible differences in the amount that I had poured. 

Suddenly embarrassed, I tried to explain. “No, it's just- just that I'll be driving later.” 

She giggled, and I figured out that she was joking. “Relax,” she teased as she brushed my hand with hers. 

The waitress dropped off the check, and I swiftly handed her my card, which warranted another glare from Kirsten. “Cameron, you didn't have to pay for me.” 

“But I wanted to,” I replied with a devilish grin. 

“But I asked you out, so I should pay,” she asserted. 

“Well...,” I paused to think of a solution. “Then you'll just have to buy me dessert.” 

“So there's going to be dessert now,” she joked. 

“There's a frozen yogurt place around the corner, if you want.” We were having such a good time, that I didn't even want to take her home afterward, but I would settle for dessert. 

“I'd like that.” She drank the last sip of her wine, and took my hand in hers. Maybe she didn't want the night to end just yet either. 

The waitress promptly dropped off the receipt and my card. I filled out the tip amount and total, signing the bottom and placing my card back in my wallet. I quickly looked at my phone, 9:27pm. I was fairly certain that the frozen yogurt place closed at 10, so we still had time. 

I offered her my hand and we left the restaurant. 

“Lead the way, Sweetie,” she said. The nickname seemed to roll off her tongue easily, and I couldn't contain my ear-to-ear grin. Now that I think about it, a smile had been plastered on my face for most of the day. 

“Right this way, Love.” I couldn't tell if it was the wine, or the nickname but a blush went up her neck to her cheeks. I think Love was going to be my new nickname of choice for her, with Princess being a close second. 

Kirsten's phone chirped, interrupting our little moment. She checked it quickly and said, “Camille is staying over at Linus's tonight.” Her smile fell a bit, and I felt the need to comfort her. 

“You are always welcome at my place, you don't even have to ask.” I pulled her in closer and placed a kiss in her hair. 

“Thank you,” she beamed. 

We arrived at the frozen yogurt place, and I politely opened the door for her. I got my usual- chocolate with brownie bites, strawberries, and cake pieces. I glanced over at Kirsten's- cake batter with a ton of cake pieces (I think half the container was cake pieces), cheesecake, and chocolate covered pretzels. “You must like cake, huh?,” I teased.

“What? It's good.” She cut in front of me, handing the cashier her card before I could reach for mine. 

We took the frozen yogurt to go, and went back to my place. 

We sat on the couch, and she snuggled into my side. “So, what do you want to watch?,” I asked handing her the remote. It was the polite thing to do, since we watched Doctor Who all afternoon. She browsed Netflix, and selected Star Trek Into Darkness. 

“I haven't seen this one yet,” she said. 

“Huh, I wouldn't have pegged you for a Star Trek fan.” Usually Linus and I pick the movies, so I guess I don't know what kind she liked. Although she never did complain about Robocop, Star Wars, Avengers, or Guardians of the Galaxy. She just gave me a curious look, and snuggled in closer. 

About thirty minutes into the movie, Kirsten was fast asleep. I shifted my body so I was laying down a bit more, and she instinctively tightened her grip around my waist. All in all, I'd think it was a great first date. 

…

 

“Cameron,” I heard. “Cameron.” I felt a hand on my shoulder, gently shaking me awake. 

“Hmm?,” I groaned. 

“Cameron, the couch is uncomfortable.” I opened my eyes, seeing an annoyed looking Kirsten very close to my face. 

“What time is it?,” I murmured, rubbing my eyes that were now dry from sleeping with contacts. 

“Clock says 12:37am.” 

“Uh huh.” 

“Come on, bed.” She tugged on my hand, pulling me with her off of the couch. She dragged me with her to my bedroom, and automatically started rifling through my drawers. 

“You need something?,” I asked. 

“Nope, I'm good. Just finding something to wear to bed.” I was about to help her, when she pulled out a plain tshirt and a pair of my boxers. 

She unzipped her dress, and I nervously excused myself. “I'm just going to take out my contacts,” as I quickly grabbed a pair of sweatpants and went to my bathroom. I took a few minutes longer than necessary, to make sure she had enough time to change. I peeked out the door, and noticed Kirsten in my bed laying on her side. I slipped under the covers and hugged her into my chest. “Goodnight Love,” I whispered into her ear. 

She laced her fingers in mine and muttered, “Goodnight Sweetie.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've given up at guessing how many chapters this story is going to be lol. So, I'm just going to continue writing until I figure it out. Hope you all enjoy! Thank you again for the kudos and comments! It makes my day :) 
> 
> Side note: I'm on vacation with the hubby this week. And I totally thought I would finish this chapter (to where I wanted it to end), but it's not happening. So shorter chapter for this one. The next chance I'll get to update is sometime next week. So until then! xo

*Kirsten's POV*

I woke up to sunlight shining in my face, cutting through the blinds at the window. I took in the surroundings I could see, without moving. My back was against Cameron's chest, and his arm was underneath my head, and his other hand resting on my hip. How did we get to the bed? The memories of last night came rushing back. We cuddled up on the couch, ate our frozen yogurt and watched a movie. I must have fallen asleep during it, because I saw the credits rolling on the TV, and Cameron was asleep with his arms wrapped around me. I had woken up with a stiff pain in my back from sleeping half sitting up/half laying down. I nudged Cameron awake so that we could to go to his bed. 

I didn't know what time it was now, and I didn't really feel the need to wake up just yet. But the sunlight was getting in the way of sleeping. I rolled over and curled into his side. My movement caused Cameron to shift so he was laying on his back, but his even breathing suggested that he was still asleep. He was shirtless. I lightly placed my hand over his scar. I was lulled back to sleep by the steady rise and fall of his chest. 

・

 

*Cameron's POV*

I heard a light snoring next to me. It was quite possibly the cutest noise I've ever heard. I opened my eyes, seeing Kirsten curled into my side with her hand around my hip and her leg hitched across mine. She was beautiful. 

She shifted in her sleep, snuggling in closer and her hand moved from my hip to my chest, placing it in the middle of my scar. I wondered if she was awake, if she consciously placed her hand over my scar. But she was still snoring. I still hadn't told her, and she hasn't asked. 

I recalled the memory of that night. I didn't hear her approach my room. I was getting a shirt to change into when I noticed her. It was partially my fault, I don't know why I didn't close the door. She was just staring, her eyes shifting down and then back up again. There was no way she didn't notice my scar. She was searching my eyes, as if she could find the answers there. It took me a few seconds to process it... it was just residual emotion, Robbie's curiosity. Just residual emotion, that was all. I crossed the room and took one last look at her. She almost looked like she was going to speak, but I shut the door before she could. Just residual emotion... 

I'm honestly surprised she didn't ask me right away, when she saw it that night. Then I was surprised that she didn't ask after that. The residual emotion was gone, but I couldn't explain why she didn't ask. This was Kirsten, and she usually spoke what was on her mind. I couldn't figure out what bothered me more- that she didn't care enough to ask, or that she acted like it never happened. 

I should probably tell her. We were, in fact, dating now. I always dreaded telling someone, anyone really. Maggie and Ayo knew, as part of my medical history. I hadn't even told Linus. Without fail, it scared women off. Sometimes not at first, but eventually it scared them off. There were common reactions- disgust (which was by far the worst, although the quickest), seemingly acceptance but still walking on egg shells around me, and the inevitable reaction of not wanting the responsibility of dating someone that might keel over at any minute. If I'm being honest with myself, it's the reason I shied away from dating the last few years. It always seemed to be too much of a hassle. 

Kirsten shifted again, waking up this time. She flexed her hand, her fingers grazing the raised flesh there. I'm going to tell her. She was a rip the band aid off fast kind of girl. I could do the same. 

"Good morning, Princess.” I placed a kiss to her forehead and tucked her hair behind her ear, my fingers lingering at her cheek for a moment. 

She placed a kiss on my shoulder. “Mmm... Good morning Cam.” She lightly traced my scar with her fingers. 

Now or never, you can do it Cameron. “Kirsten?,” I asked, gently placing my hand over hers on my chest. 

"Yeah?” She looked up at me with a soft smile. 

I brushed her hand with my thumb. “I want to tell you.” I didn't need to elaborate. She glanced at my chest where our hands were, and looked back up at me. Her expression didn't change, her smile was encouraging. “I was born with a congenital heart defect. Initially my doctors just monitored it, but I needed a valve replaced. I had heart surgery when I was ten. They didn't know if I would survive the surgery. When I did, my parents refused to let me do anything, even after the doctors cleared me to resume normal activities. I couldn't play sports, or go outside, or do anything strenuous. They were terrified that my heart would give out. To this day, they still treat me like I'm fragile, breakable...” All throughout my speech, her expression remained the same. It was almost unnerving. Now seconds were passing, and the silence was deafening. At this moment, I wanted her to be like every other girl and say something, anything. Then she did. 

"Well I think,” she spoke carefully. “That you've proven them wrong.” She smiled at me, and I could only see affection behind her eyes. I exhaled quickly, relieved at her response. She laced her fingers in mine, and moved our joined hands below my scar. She propped herself up on her elbow, and quickly placed a kiss at the bottom of my scar. She left a trail of kisses up my scar. My pulse raced. I had never had anyone that accepted that part of my life so readily. “Thank you,” she whispered into my chest. 

"For what?,” I breathed out. 

She looked up at me. “For telling me.” She leaned up and kissed me briefly. 

I was suddenly aware that we had been up for a while, and I was starving. “So... how about I make us breakfast?” 

"Yes please,” she replied as she placed another quick kiss on my cheek. 

I led her to the kitchen and I got out all the ingredients to make french toast, eggs, and bacon. I got out several pans, having mastered multitasking in the kitchen years ago. I started the bacon first, and mixed all the ingredients for french toast in a bowl and got those started. I put on a kettle of water for tea, and continued with breakfast. All the while, Kirsten was sitting at the kitchen island, content to just stare at me. Everything was almost done, when she got up and helped herself to the tea. She got out two mugs, poured the hot water, and was looking through my assortment of teas. “You know, I can get that,” I offered as I was plating the french toast and bacon. 

"But I want to help. Green tea okay?” She had already pulled out two tea bags. So I guess I was getting green tea either way. 

"Green tea would be great. Thank you.”

She finished making the tea, and took the mugs to the table as I finished cooking the eggs. She helped herself to my cabinets, pulling out the syrup, butter from the fridge, and utensils and set the table for us. The gesture tugged at my heart a bit, and I hoped that every day with Kirsten could be like this. I marveled at how she fit so easily into my life, that it really wasn't much of a transition to a romantic relationship for us. 

I divided up the eggs between the two plates, and carried them over to the table. I kissed her head as I set down her plate. “Here you are, Babe.” 

"Thank you.” She gave me another one of her genuine smiles. I realized that I might be getting addicted to them, the way her smiles light up the room. 

We ate in silence, and she helped me clean up everything after. She washed the dishes, while I dried them and put them away. The second I was done, I pulled her in for a hug. “So, what would you like to do? Watch Doctor Who perhaps?” 

"Hmm... no.” She didn't elaborate. 

"No?,” I asked, pulling back slightly. 

"I never got to finish watching Star Trek, so we're watching that first.” 

"Well, it couldn't have been very good, since you fell asleep during it,” I reasoned. I couldn't contain my laugh though. 

"Maybe, you shouldn't have given me all that wine. Then I wouldn't have been so tired,” she teased. She kissed my neck, and for a moment I almost wished I didn't suggest watching TV. “Come on, we're watching Star Trek.” 

She led me to my bedroom, and we cuddled while watching Star Trek, followed by an episode of Doctor Who. We ordered lunch in, this time opting for Thai food.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry it took long to come up with this chapter... but vacation + writer's block + a bunch of other Camsten stories in my head... is the reason it took so long. I didn't forget about this story, promise! Enjoy, xo!

*Kirsten's POV*

We were watching Doctor Who after lunch. The majority of my focus was on the show, but a smaller part of my brain was cataloging the events of the last few days trying to make sense of it all. Cameron was my boyfriend. We had a great first date, which kind of blended into today. Not that I minded at all. I enjoyed spending time with him. Whenever I'm with him I feel... happy... content... and something else. It was a strange concept, to identify my own emotions, that have been slowly evolving since starting with the Stitchers program. 

Cameron caressed the bare skin on my shoulder, causing me to lose all train of thought. His touch left a trail of warmth on my skin, tingling slightly. He probably didn't know the effect he was having on me... probably. I closed my eyes, enjoying the sensation for a moment. 

“You're not falling asleep on me are you?,” he asked, laughing a bit. 

I looked directly into his green eyes, getting lost in them for a moment. “Of course not. Just... resting my eyes for a second.” I couldn't exactly put into words the effect he had on me, so I figured I probably couldn't explain it to him. 

“So, I was thinking about dinner. Do you want to go to that new Mexican place? Or maybe the cute diner down the road from here?” He pulled me in closer, kissing my forehead. “Or Indian food... pizza, whatever you want.” I felt his breath in my hair. 

“Whatever I want, huh?,” looking up at him again through my lashes. His face was inches from mine. 

“Yeah, of-of course,” he stammered. He looked flushed, and backed away slightly. Maybe I had an idea of the effect I had on him, just the same as he had on me. 

“How about we stay in tonight? We do have work tomorrow,” I reasoned. If we stayed in, we wouldn't have to worry about being out at a restaurant later than planned, which could involve me falling asleep on his couch again. “Although, I would like to go to that diner this weekend.” I smiled at him. 

“Alright, we can stay in. You know, I could cook if you wanted, instead of takeout.” He hugged me closer to him.

“You choose,” I shrugged. 

“How about I make my famous meatloaf and mashed potatoes?” Somehow I knew he would want to cook. That's Cameron, ever the foodie. 

“That sounds delicious.”

“Did you uh- want a ride to your place? If you wanted a change of clothes. Not that I'm complaining about what you're wearing, obviously. You look great in everything.” 

“Sure. I can stop by, grab some clothes.” I should probably pack a few changes of clothes, considering neither one of us seemed to want time apart. That was another first for me, wanting to be around Cameron. Although I was around Cameron more often before we even started dating, than I ever was with a boyfriend. Usually I just went my separate way, only bothering to do something with a boyfriend when he called or showed up at my place. At least we only had work for the next two days, then had the weekend off again. I should probably pack enough clothes to get me through work this week. 

“Alright.” He practically jumped out of the bed.

“Cameron, what are you doing?” I motioned up and down at him. 

“Driving you to your place. Right?”

“We're in the middle of an episode. It's not like we're in a rush. We can go after this one.” I pointed back at the screen, which was still playing an episode of Doctor Who. 

“Right, of course.” He hurried over to resume the spot next to me, so we could finish watching this episode.

Oh Cameron, always awkward... but in an endearing, adorable kind of way. It was cute really. 

…

After we got back from my place (where I packed five changes of clothes, just in case), Cameron was starting on dinner. I was mesmerized watching him. 

“Well, the meatloaf is cooking and the potatoes are boiling,” he said. He pulled me up from my seat in the kitchen and led me to the couch. He propped up his feet on the table, relaxing for a bit while dinner was cooking. 

“You know, I could have helped.” I pulled his hand into mine and curled into his side. 

“I know. I'm just used to cooking by myself is all.” There was a hint of sadness in his eyes, although he looked away from me the moment I realized what it was. “But thank you for offering.”

“Well, if you ever change your mind, I'll be here.” The words left my mouth before I could think, but even as they did I knew they were true. If Cameron needed me for anything at all, I would be there for him. Whether it was helping cooking, solving cases at work, needing someone to talk to, or just having a companion, I would be there. “You know, about helping with cooking,” I said trying to lighten the mood. 

“Yeah, maybe I'll take you up on that.” 

“So, that diner this weekend, right?”

“Yeah, I'd love that.” 

Love. Something about the way he said it, made me want to hear it under different circumstances. 

_“Is this what love is?”_

_“My dear Kirsten, I think you might love him... He loves you too, you know.”_

_“Someday you might find someone you love, who loves you back.”_

It all made sense. I was in love with Cameron. The wanting to be around him all the time, being comfortable around him, not having to remind myself constantly to show affection with him. Well, looks like Camille was right. Not that she needs to know that... she would get an even bigger ego, and then we'd all have to deal with her. 

“Hey, where'd you go Princess?” 

“Cameron,” I said softly. I had to know, had to ask. I shifted back a little, so I could see his face better, but still held onto his hand. “Do you love me?,” I asked gently, looking into his eyes. I hoped that he could see the love in my gaze. 

The smile left his face. “I... I- where is this coming from?,” he stammered. 

I shrugged. “Something Camille said yesterday.” He looked like he was in shock, and started to pull his hand back. I gripped tighter and caressed his hand with my thumb. I inched my whole body closer. “So, do you?”

“I, uh- yeah, I love you.” He gave me a small smile. 

“Good.” I grinned back at him. 

“Good?,” he questioned. 

“Yeah, I thought you might.”

“You thought-”

“I love you too,” I interrupted. 

“You... love me?” He looked entirely unsure at this particular moment. 

I leaned in closer. “Yes Cameron.” I kissed his cheek, “I” and his other cheek, “love” and finally his lips, “you.”

His face lit up at that, from the huge smile to the sparkle in his eyes. He pulled me in for a passionate kiss, his hands running through my hair. My hands grasped his shirt, pulling him closer. He pulled away first, cupping my cheek to keep me close. “Kirsten, I love you so much. You have no idea.” The last few words were barely a whisper. 

“I think I have some idea,” laughing into his lips. “I love you Cameron,” I said returning the sentiment again. 

“I'll never get tired of hearing you say that.” He kissed my cheek swiftly, and pulled me for a bear hug. I didn't think I could contain my smile, even if I tried. 

I heard the familiar timer in his kitchen go off. “Oh, I have to check on the potatoes,” he said pulling back. “Would you, uh, like to help? If you want of course.” I knew that it took a lot for him to ask that of me, and was delighted that he was opening up to me... to us. 

“Yeah, sure.” 

He rushed over to turn the timer off and I trailed behind him. “The uh, recipe is on my tablet. Do you mind grabbing the rest of the ingredients?”

“Of course.” I opened up the tablet and got all the ingredients out of the fridge. “Alright, what next?” 

“Well I got the mashed potatoes covered. Would you want to make a salad?” I nodded in response. “The cutting board and knife are over there,” he said pointed at one of his cabinets. 

We worked in silence. He finished the mashed potatoes, and checked on the meatloaf. I got out the lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and croutons and fixed us two large salads. I brought the salads over to the table, grabbing utensils, and glasses of water as well. “What kind of dressing do you want?,” I asked. 

“Oh, uh, the french dressing is good.”

“That's my favorite,” I admitted. I grabbed the bottle out of the fridge and set that on the table. “Is there anything else I can help with?” 

“All that's left is serving the food.” 

I simply helped myself to grab two plates and a serving spoon, and dished out mashed potatoes for the both of us. He came up beside me, and added meatloaf to the dishes. 

“Thank you Love,” he whispered in my ear. 

I shook off the shiver from having him so close. “Anytime Sweetie.” I took the plates from him and spun around to take them to the table. He followed closely behind with two glasses of wine. 

He handed me a glass after we sat down, and raised his. “A toast. To uh...” 

“Us,” I offered. 

“To us,” he nodded.

I clinked my glass to his and took a sip. 

“And maybe a toast to Camille. So is there anything else I should be thanking Camille for?” He raised an eyebrow at that, clearly curious to our roommate/friendship relationship.

“Well, she may have told me that you liked me... I guess that was, uh, a week ago now. It made me realize that I liked you too.”

He laughed. “To Camille as well.” He sipped his glass. “You know, I'm going to send her a basket of muffins. And maybe wine.” 

I couldn't help but laugh at that. “I'm sure she'll love that.” Even if we would have to deal with her inflated ego. 

With that, we enjoyed our dinner.


End file.
